SEATTLE – The number of shootings on America's interstates has increased across the country and one of the main reasons for this is aggressive driving.
Even if more attention is paid to this problem, according to the police it is not an easy solution.
“You have the recipe for some real challenges,” said Chris Loftis of the Washington State Patrol.
The Washington State Patrol is seeing more shootings on the highways, and they are difficult to prevent.
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Highway shootings are increasing across the United States. (FoxNews)
“The roads are dangerous enough without something like this,” Loftis said. “It makes it harder to patrol and respond. And then it makes it harder to investigate.”
Authorities attribute many of these shootings to aggressive driving and the reaction of drivers around them.
“When there are situations where people's behavior is changing about how they operate their vehicles,” Loftis said. “And then people's behavior changes in the way they respond to aggression. That overlaps with more people, more cars.”
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Over the past year, areas of Washington state, California, Wisconsin, Indiana, Pennsylvania and Florida have reported an increase in highway shootings.
States from coast to coast report more highway shootings since early 2023 (FoxNews)
“The numbers are too high,” said David Reich of the National Highway Traffic Safety Foundation.
The best advice for drivers is to try to drive carefully and avoid aggressive drivers.
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“At any time, if someone is driving aggressively, try to stay away from them,” Reich said. “It's human nature to want to curse the guy out or do something to retaliate. But it's not worth it.”
The Washington State Patrol is fighting back with more officers on the road.
Police say officer shortage makes it difficult to prevent highway shootings (FoxNews)
“We've definitely put more emphasis on patrols and patrol units focused on certain parts,” Loftis said. “Especially because we're seeing so many things.”
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A shortage of police officers has also made it difficult to crack down on these shootings.
